NEST retires S76A

The Northland Emergency Services Trust Northern Rescue Helicopter has retired and donated its oldest operational S76A to the Museum of Transport and Technology (MOAT) in Auckland.

Call sign ‘Juliet’ manufactured in 1979 and was originally owned by the Jordanian Air Force and primarily used in the VIP role to fly the Jordanian king. It was later bought by Dick Smith who, with his wife, completed the first east to west circumnavigation of the world and joined NEST in 1997.

It was the first S76 to be operated by the rescue service and was officially retired in 2019 but was held for spares to support the other S76s in the fleet.

There has even been a children’s book written about her – ‘Juliet to the Rescue’.

Following a blessing by local kaumatua Fred Tito, Juliet was this week transported from Whangārei to Auckland to join the MOTAT Collection having faithfully served the Northland community for 22 years and completing 22,000 take-offs and landings and flew around 10,000 hours.